On The Way Home

So we got up again very early and went to the airport to go home!!! Our flight out of Barcelona was over an hour late, so we were pretty set that we were going to miss our connecting flight from London home. Isaac ran through Heathrow Airport and we made our flight! 10 hours later we were back in the states and home!!!!! The travel fairy's were with us and our luggage made it to Phoenix the same time we did!!! It was great to be back home!!!

Back to Barcelona

Early risers today. We were up at 6:30 am and out of our room and waiting to depart by 7:40. Around 8:30 they called our color and like that the cruise was done. They were departing again this evening so off we went. As Isaac and I were waiting in line for a taxi to the hotel, Brandee comes running by and said that someone took Judy´s suitcase. We are finding this hard to believe since you had to write your name, address and phone number on a tag and put it on your suitcase. In any event, Brandee found the bag and I think this lady thought she worked for the ship. Judy, Mark and Sarah were off to the airport and Isaac, Brandee and I went back to Barcelona. We got to Hotel MonteCarlo and it is very nice!!! Brandee found a Hostel and then we took the Metro to the Unfinished Church which was done by Gaudi. It will not be finished until 2026!!!! This church is amazing! The detail in every little corner was great to see!!! Back on the Metro and back to the hotel for some rest. We are now on our way to dinner and then to sleep for the long trip home tomorrow!!!

Last Day At Sea

Our last day at sea was a great day to sleep in, at least until 10am when the announcements for the last day activities started. We went to breakfast and enjoyed ourselves with food. We relaxed most of the afternoon until the big jackpot Bingo game. Samantha did not volunteer to be the Bingo Commissioner again, but it was ok because there were a lot more people attending the last bingo game and she probably did not want to do a bingo boogie in front of such a large crowd.

Before dinner, we went to the comedy and cruise in review show. It was very funny because the performer made a lot of jokes about how much food we eat on the ship and how small the rooms are...for most of us. Dinner was great and we called it an early night because they would begin kicking us off the ship as early as 7am the next day.

Our last day was perfect, but we are ready to sleep in our own bed!

Naples, Pompeii and Capri

Our arrival in to the port of Naples was a little different than the others because all excursions had to exit the ship on Deck 5 instead of Deck 2, but we figured it out pretty quickly. We also received a notice on our cabin door that due to a strike at Pompeii, the shore excursion would be delayed by 1 hour. So, we had breakfast and got ready for a hot day on shore. Everything with the tour seemed to be going according to plan early on. The tour guide was an older gentleman who was excited to tell us about Naples and Pompeii and gave us interesting details on the countryside as we headed toward Pompeii. We arrived in Pompeii a short while later and went through the gates toward the ruins. Michele, our guide, told us just about everything he could about the remains of Pompeii while we snapped photos of the ruins and the views of Mount Vesuvius in the background. But, the weather was hot and after the strike, many many people entered the grounds at the same time, so it was extremely crowded and difficult for the 42 people in our tour group to stick together. Finally, after Michele took one corner too fast and we almost lost a few people including my Dad, Michele became upset with us for not taking the responsibility of following him as good little tourists should. The guy lost his cool big time and started yelling at my Dad and accusing us of being self-centered Americans only interested in ourselves and in taking pictures instead of listening to him talk. Well, he was wrong on several points. We did listen with interest to his discussion of the ruins, the frescoes, who lived in which houses and the deities of the temple remains. Second, there were more than just Americans on the tour. And lastly, we're tourists! Of course we are going to take pictures. Anyway, the bus ride back to the ship was pretty quiet and several people filled out complaint forms with Royal Caribbean after getting back on board the ship. I don't think Royal Caribbean is going to do anything though, because the shore excursions are all pre-paid anyway. It was still an interesting tour of Pompeii even though we experienced a classic tour guide melt-down.

When we got back to the ship, Samantha and I along with my Dad decided to take the hydrofoil ship to the Isle of Capri. We were uncertain what time we should head back because the trip took 40 minutes and we had to be back on the Brilliance by 6:30pm. Fortunately, there was a hydrofoil leaving at 2:40pm and a return at 4:30pm. We could have taken the return at 5:05pm, but we decided that was pushing it a little. Good thing we took the earlier return, because the hydrofoil trip actually took about 50 minutes. That meant we only had about 45 minutes on Capri, but it was definitely worth it. We stopped for some photos, and at a little pizzeria for some Margherita pizza which was absolutely delicious! We shopped for a little bit and then headed toward Bay 3 for our return hydrofoil back to Napoli. We got back to the Brilliance at about 5:30pm which was just enough time to relax before dinner. It turned out to be another great day in the Mediterranean! Unfortunately, we have to pack up our luggage today and place it outside our cabin door tonight because tomorrow morning we port in Barcelona and then head home on Sunday. So the goal today is to enjoy our last day on the ship and get ready for going back to work in a few days...yikes! See y'all back in the States, I'm going to get a Pina Colada!

Day At Sea Numero Dos

After Venice, we had a wonderful day at sea where we slept in until about 10am. We probably would have slept longer, but there was some announcement in the hallway about some cruise activity...probably Bingo...that woke us up. That's ok though, because we had enough time to catch breakfast at the Windjammer Cafe. The cook who makes omelets to order knows his eggs. I have been inspired by his egg-cooking abilities and he makes a great salmon and onion omelet although Samantha did not want to try it.

We enjoyed our sea-day by not doing much of anything. We did go play some Bingo and Samantha volunteered to be the Bingo Commissioner. But, in order to be the Bingo Commissioner, she had to perform a "Bingo Boogie" in front of the crowd. They all approved of her style of Bingo Boogie and she was rewarded with a Royal Caribbean keychain and a complimentary drink of the day. Unfortunately, that's all we got from the 5 games of Bingo that day...but it was fun anyway!

Later that night we had our second formal dinner. We had pictures taken in front of the backdrop of the Brilliance ship at night, but they did not come out as well as we liked. The picture of our group at our table came out very nice. We then walked around the ship for awhile before going to bed to rest for Naples. Another wonderful day on vacation, even though we are pretty much ready to go home.

Venice Day 2

Slept until about 9 am and went to breakfast. I was still not feeling great so decided to stay on the ship while Isaac went and explored Venice. I am bummed that I am not going but atleast I went last night and have been there before. Isaac went to the Rialto bridge and did some shopping but did not have a lot of time before we were leaving. Had a good night. The theme for the night was a Masquerade Ball. A lot of people had masques which was neat to look at. After dinner we went to the card room and played Scrabble with his parents. Went to look at the midnight buffet by the pool but dod't look that great. It was about 12:30am and time to sleep. We are at sea so another relaxing day to come.

Venice Day 1

So we were out on the 11th floor as we came into Venice. It was cool to see all the little islands as we were getting ready to dock! Once docked we met in the theatre to leave for our excursion to Murano and Burano. Our little boat took us past Venice and onto Murano. We went into a glass blowing shop (same one I was at 2 years ago when I was there, they must have a deal for all the tourists to come to their shop) We got to see this man make a vase and then this horse figurine. It is neat to see how movable glass can be. Then of course there was time to shop. Isaac got a paperweight. We continued to the island of Burano which is known for their production of lace and their colorful houses. Again went to the same place I was at 2 years ago but watched as this older woman created a lace design. They had some local wine and cookies for us. Isaac and I walked around the island took some pictures of the houses and sat and had a drink. Back to the boat we went. We got ready and at night went to celebrate our 2 year anniversary in Venice. Found a nice restaruant by St. Mark's Square. Had some Chianti to drink. I had this huge Caprisi Salad to start and Isaac had great ravioli. I then had some spaghetti with clams as Isaac had shrimp that looked like mini lobsters. Back to the boat we went.While we were waiting for the shuttle to take us back to the boat we heard this rumbling behind us. There were 2 men selling fake designer purses on the street and a cop must have seen them. They grabbed their stash and ran. They dropped a few purses on the way and some guy picked them up like he was going to take them. The cop saw this and made the gut give the purses to him. It was amuzing to watch.

I have started to get a cold. So wanted to get some sleep. We are in Venice again tomorrow.

Dubrovnik

We docked in Dubrovnik and did not sign up for a tour, which was actualy nice to be in a port and on our own schedule. We took the shuttle to the old city. The streets look like they are made of marble! We decided to take a walk around the city by way of the wall. We walked up a lot of steps and what a view!! It took about an hour to walk the wall and stop and take pictures. I am so glad that we did that! Once we finished we walked over to the temple. This is the 2nd oldest temple in Europe. The first being the one we were at in Barcelona. The temple was small. The red velvet drapes that my mom had told us about were still hanging. There was a little museum and torah were there that were from the 1400's!!! Amazing! After that did a little shopping which was difficult because Dubrovinik's money is not really Euro's eventhough they take them. Got back on the boat and relaxed. Next will be Venice! Can sleep in since we don't dock until about noon.

Escargot and Corfu

The formal dinner was pretty nice. Samantha and I had our picture taken before dinner. They came out pretty nice, but I'm not sure if we'll purchase them or not. Dinner was nice too. We ordered the escargot appetizer which was more butter and garlic than snail, but Samantha had a couple which was really impressive!

The next day we got up earlier than we had for the other ports because our tour for Corfu left the meeting place at 7:45am. We got up, had breakfast and then got ourselves to the Pacifica theater on time. We got on a bus that trasferred us to the port terminal, then we got on another bus, but the A/C was on and our tour guide seemed pretty cool. Our tour guide, Dimitrius and our bus driver, Nico took us to our first stop, a little town outside Corfu called Palaeokastritsa. We got there around 9am and it was not crowded at all. Dimitrius suggested that we take a little boat tour of the sea caves. It was only 6 euro per person, so we went. It was breath-taking how blue the water appeared to be in all of the caves we stopped in. The sights from the boat also made the boat tour a definite highlight of the entire trip. Afterwards, we stopped at a cafe and tried an iced coffee drink they call Frappe. Then we got back on the bus and went up this very narrow, winding road to Lakones for a Greek snack and some wine tasting. The trip up the road was an experience in and of itself because there were more than a few surprise turns and tight spots that the bus driver successfully negotiated. This same road was apparently featured in the James Bond movie For Your Eyes Only. Anyway, when we got to the restaurant, the wait staff had the snack plates all setup for us along with white and red wine and some Ouzo. There were also some little tourist shops with postcards, olive wood carvings and other local trinkets. We made it back to the ship by 12:30pm and that gave us plenty of relaxation time before dinner. The Corfu stop was probably the most beautiful, but we are currently on our way to Venice, which probably has equally beautiful scenery!

Day At Sea

So a much deserved break! We slept in to about 9am. Isaac went to the gym and I relaxed. We read, napped and I got a massage and facial which felt great and Isaac took a Tai Chi class! We also went to a Shabbat service on board. There is no Rabbi so this man from Australia led the service with everyone helping. There were people from South Africa, Scottland, Israel and the US. Even someone from the Woodlands, TX who knows my Great Aunt!!!!That night was our formal night. Got dressed up , went to a meet the captain cocktail thingy (got free champagne) and then to dinner. It was nice to see everyone dressed so nice. It was early to bed since we had to be up at 6am to go to Corfu! They day flew by!!!!!

Rome

So we now know that you can do Rome in a day! We were up again yesterday around 6:30 am for an 8:15 departure to Rome. It was about 1 1/2 hours drive to the city. Which was actualy nice so we could get a little more rest before the day started. We were dropped off at the Vatican. Isaac, myself and his mom and dad decided to start walking.


We started at the the Piazza Navona. This has the fountain of the Four Rivers. It is also where Isaac spent a lot of time when he was in Rome about 9 years ago.


After that we went to Trevi Fountain and threw our pennies in. On our way to the Pantheon, which is so neat!!! We stopped for lunch and had some great pizza, pasta and of course red wine!!!!


After that we kept walking and went to the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The forum is right next to it. That was neat to see! At that point Judy and I started back to the Vatican since we knew it would take easily 40 minutes to make it there and we did not want to miss the bus back to the boat. Issac and Mark wanted to see more so we left them behind. We had a meeting time of 4pm to get to the bus and Judy and I made it around 3-3:15. As 3:55 rolled around there was still no Mark and Isaac. They came at 4. That was a little unrattling, but they made it!
At dinner last night, the people that are at our table shared their bottle of champagne and cake that they got the night before for their 25th anniversary. It was a nice way to end a very long day. Isaac and I went to the casino after dinner. I lost $10 at the casino so we went to bed. Oh, yeah before dinner we went to the show on the ship. It was a broadway review. They sang songs from Fossie, Cole Porter songs, Mama Mia, The Producers and The Full Monty. It was pretty good. Day 5 will be a day at sea :)

Livorno and Florence

So we got to wake up this morning at 6:30 am to make sure we made our bus at 8:15!! We are docked in Livorno which is about 60 miles to Florence. The bus ride was ok but we just wanted to get to our destination for the day! Of course we had to stop along the way at a leather factory. Many nice things but the price tags were a little steep! We finally got to Florence around 10:30ish!!! We were dropped off at a place where I remember being 2 years ago when I was in Florence!!! Isaac, his parents and I walked fast over to the Ufitzi Museum. It is the 2nd best museum in Europe to the Louvre in Paris. The line was too long and we only had 4 hours to spend in the city. We decided to move on. Walked over Ponte Vecchio and onto another museum (can't remember the name) Isaac and I left after about an hour and continued to the straw market.


Rubbed the nose of the boar, which if you rub you are supposed to return again to Florence.

Then onto the Duomo. It is so amazing!!! We found a nice little wine bar to enjoy a glass of Chianti. Our waiter was from Philly!!!! We had fun sitting and talking to him.



Before we knew it we were loading the bus again for the boat! The best part of the drive back was all the sunflowers!!! So now we are relaxing and getting ready for dinner and another jam packed day in Rome tomorrow.

Nice and Monaco

The cruise is going by way too fast! We anchored near Villefranche just as we were sitting down to breakfast on Tuesday morning. After breakfast we headed to the Pacifica theater on Deck 5 to gather for our excursion. Then we went back down to Deck 2 where our room is to exit the ship and get on a smaller boat to head to the shore. A short trip later, we were boarding the bus to Nice. Spent a couple of hours in Nice which was ...yes, I'm going to say it... nice!!! We went to the flower market and picked up postcards and lavender air freshener for our cruise room...something kinda smells in there and we intend to fix it!


After sampling some fruits, ice cream and anchovy-garlic bread, we went back to the bus and headed to Monaco. There we spent some time in the acquarium before going off on a little tram-tour of the sights in Monaco. The Grand Casino looked magnificent, but we didn't really have time to try to go inside. We found out later from our friends at dinner that you don't really need to be well-dressed to go inside the casino, and more importantly, none of the real gambling takes place during the day when all of the tourists are trying to check the place out. It was nice to see it from the outside though, and maybe someday we'll be able to have a proper visit.



Then it was back to the bus for our ride back to Villefranche for the tender back to the ship. It was a great day to see Nice and Monaco, but we definitely only scratched the surface.

The cruise itself is going well, but we are looking forward to our 1st day at sea so that we can spend a little more time enjoying what the ship has to offer. Today, we just got back from a neat trip to Florence, and tomorrow is our trip to Rome. So, until next time, thanks for reading and see y'all later!

Barcelona and Boarding the Ship

So we made it to Barcelona and so did our luggage!!!

Barcelona was amazing! We got to go to the Picasso Museum on Saturday and the walk there was as good as the art! We saw many street performers, just kept our distance so we could keep our wallets.

Yesterday we took a double decker bus tour around the city! It gave us a great taste of the city. We have eaten Tapas every night that we have been in Spain and had Sangria's too!!! Everything about Barcelona was fun but we were ready to sail away!!!


We boarded the ship around 1pm this afternoon and WOW!!! Isaac keeps saying that it looks like a big mall on the water! The elevators are made of glass so you can see out and see all the floors!

We depart in another few hours and will be in France in the morning.

More updates to follow!

24 Hour Count Down

Ok, the blog has been created. That should complete the pre-trip checklist in preparation for our big Mediterranean Cruise trip coming up in the next 24 hours!

Samantha and I are on our way to Barcelona, Spain for a couple of days before we board the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Brilliance of the Seas for a 12-day cruise around the coast of Italy plus a few other interesting places. I've never been on a cruise before, nor have I attempted to blog a trip before, so this should be an interesting experience.

After a couple of days in Barcelona, we leave for the following ports:
Nice, France
Florence, Italy
Rome, Italy
Corfu, Greece
Dubrovnik, Croatia
Venice, Italy
Naples, Italy
and then back to Barcelona!

So, we're all packed and ready to go. I'm a little nervous about the trip because every guide book I've read keeps warning the traveler about pickpockets and roving bands of sketchy people looking to make a quick buck off of the unsuspecting traveler. But, I guess all you can do is be aware and try not to put yourself in unfavorable situations...Oh yeah, and have fun!

Accidentally, I once dropped my wallet in a restaurant in Israel and a local was gracious enough to chase me down before I was out the door. Thanks Good-Guy Dude! You know who you are! So, it ain't all bad...We'll see what happens in the next 24 hours.